Well, That Escalated Quickly

A slightly shorter report here owing to having missed a good 20mins of the game for one reason or other coupled with the fact that the wind and rain didn’t lend itself to keeping detailed notes.

King’s made their way to Dartfordians for the first time in a long time (perhaps ever….not sure) and received a warm welcome in a busy club room. As the players and coaches got to grips with the conditions, inside the hosts laid on a terrific lunch as they celebrated the valuable contribution volunteers make to their club (as indeed they do at King’s and a multitude of others) and thanking their title sponsors RTS for their continued support.

On the playing front the visitors were glad to welcome back Duncan Bucknell after an absence stretching back to round six, whilst on the bench was a returning Luke Minors who has not managed a 1XV game this season owing to various injuries. With fixtures being called off all over the L&SE region Darts had done well to get their second pitch into by and large good condition ahead of the what was always going to be a wild afternoon. The whistler from Sussex via the SE Federation was Richard Hanks – who coincidentally oversaw King’s defeat at Chichester back in September – and he blew it for the first time at 1430.

Your correspondent is advised that it was King’s scored first, an early try from scrumhalf Will Slater who spotted a gap in the Darts’ fringe defence and exploited it to cross from 20m out with George Jones on target with the extras; 0-7. The next quarter of the game, indeed arguably the majority of the first half belonged to the home side. Their cause was initially helped by two yellow cards in as many minutes, the first for a failure to wrap in the tackle (Owen Farrell wouldn’t have seen the cheese) for lock Dan Staunton followed by another for a failed interception deemed to be a slap-down which saw full-back James Houstoun also off. Two men up the hosts were soon level via hooker Tom Duggan with the first of three conversions from Jonny Regnier; 7—7.

Having resisted for the remainder of the sin-bin period, King’s succumbed once more as Darts forced a way over, tighthead Alex Vousden getting the score much to King’s chagrin as they felt with both knees on the floor the tackle was complete before the ball was ultimately grounded, but Mr Hanks disagreed; 14-7. It also marked the end of Tom Smith’s day, Luke Minors into the action sooner than he might have expected

King’s were quickly on the attack and aided by a yellow for a high tackle by try-scorer Vousden, it was to be Theo Rhodes who squeezed home for his first try of the season after some good close-quarter work from the pack; 14-12. No to be outdone Darts finished the half the stronger as winger Olly Aylmer crossed out wide, the angle defeating the kick.

HT: 19-12

Having played into the wind the hosts could and should have been pretty satisfied with their efforts as the elements showed no sign of abating in the second forty. Indeed, they started brightly now into the teeth of Storm Dennis, a try bonus point secured by busy No.8 Sam Allen just what the home side’s supporters were after; 24-12. In a game of ebb and flow it was King’s turn to score next, a dominant scum allowing Dave Lawson a chance to match his opposite number’s efforts minutes earlier. Crucially George Jones was on target; 24-19.

With neither team able to excerpt much by way of control it fell to Darts to inject some quality when a box kick was fielded by Joe Scott, who enjoyed a good game, the full-back setting making a telling midfield break before a couple of quick passes later (no little achievement on the day) saw flanker Ryan Chandler under the posts; 31-19. Things now looked bleak both in the skies above and on the pitch for King’s but resisting the temptation to panic went about gaining territory, a couple of powerful carries from Chris du Toit caught the eye as he kept the defence on its collective toes. In the end it fell to the piggies to snuffle out the try though, replacement prop Jonny Kiddle emerging from the bottom of a muddy pile with Jones converting; 31-26.

With the match now in its death-throws the tension was palpable amongst the crowd and the players appeared relatively composed by comparison. It was King’s who were the aggressors throughout this period and Darts were creaking – centre Ollie Edwards on the end of a team yellow as the cumulative infringements took their toll. Time and again the hosts repelled King’s but their discipline failed them, especially in respect of the offside line, and eventually they could resist no more as Dave Lawson got his brace in the last play, Jones stroking over the crucial 2pts; 31-33.

King’s last two trips to SE London / Kent first to Beckenham and today to Bexley have seen 127 points scored with an aggregate score of 62-65 in favour of the old boys. It’s a cliché in many ways but there really are no easy games in this league as the top two found out, Havant losing at 9th place Thurrock and Westcombe Park at Belsize Park. Darts will have of course been disappointed to have the 5pts ripped from their grasp, but the spirit on show must be of some solace to the coaches who saw the players give it their all and to the supporters who cheered their team on. We wish them well in their remaining six fixtures – three of which are against the teams currently in 11th, 12th & 14th and it would be a brave pundit to call the outcomes.

Next up King’s host the side immediately above them in the league, Thurrock who will arrive riding the crest of a wave having downed top of the table Havant. King’s got the better of the Essex boys in November 15-29 and another close game may well be on the cards. Watch the website, Twitter and Facebook for details about that one – it may not be at home if the weather continues to refuse to play ball.